The Cleveland Browns aren’t exactly in a good spot in the 2025 season. Without a true plan at quarterback, the team has crawled out to a 0-2 start, and there isn’t much hope that things will get better for them anytime soon. Making matters worse, the Browns are watching their former quarterback, Baker Mayfield, ball out with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, with his strong play catching the attention of his former teammate, Odell Beckham Jr.
Mayfield and Beckham teamed up in Cleveland for two-and-a-half seasons, and while their partnership initially got off to a hot start, things crumbled in 2021. It certainly didn’t help that Beckham’s father, Odell Beckham Sr., posted a video on social media criticizing Mayfield for not throwing the ball to his son. Recently, the younger Beckham took a second to address the controversy between his father and Mayfield.
Odell Beckham Jr. Dishes on Baker Mayfield Controversy
Beckham burst onto the scene in 2014 with the New York Giants after getting selected with the No. 12 overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft. He immediately rattled off three straight Pro Bowl campaigns, earning the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award in 2014 and a pair of All-Pro Second Team honors in 2015 and 2016.
Over time, Beckham’s relationship with the Giants deteriorated, and he ended up getting traded to the Browns, where he was paired up with Mayfield. Initially, things went well, as Cleveland won 11 games in their second season together, although Beckham only played in seven contests before he tore his ACL. After making it to the postseason in 2020, though, there was hope that 2021 would be the year where Cleveland reached another level with Beckham back in the fold.
Of course, that did not happen, and tensions quickly rose between Mayfield and Beckham. Things culminated in Beckham’s father posting a video on Instagram of Mayfield not throwing the ball to his son, and just a couple of days later, Beckham ended up getting released. When looking back on the situation, Beckham regrets how things went down, and while he and Mayfield are on good terms now, he also defended his father for standing up for him.
“I don’t like certain things that happened, especially with me and Bake,” Beckham said via Complex News. “People don’t understand, me and Bake is cool. The whole thing, the video comes out, my pops, we never intend to hurt nobody else. My pops is like, ‘My last name is Beckham … I’m gonna always protect mine, period.'”
Baker Mayfield, Odell Beckham Jr. Both Enjoyed Success After Leaving the Browns
Beckham would latch on with the Los Angeles Rams, and he would help them go on to win Super Bowl LVI over the Cincinnati Bengals. However, he tore his ACL again during that game, and he’s only played in 23 games since then. Mayfield, meanwhile, eventually found his way to the Bucs, where he has emerged as a Pro Bowl-caliber quarterback for them.
Both developments have been tough for the Browns to stomach, and after they failed to develop Mayfield, while also pulling off a disastrous blockbuster trade for Deshaun Watson, Cleveland is stuck in limbo once again. For now, Joe Flacco is manning the quarterback position, and he will attempt to lead Cleveland to its first victory of the season when it takes on the Green Bay Packers in Week 3.
